Worse Than Death
by slickboy444
Summary: Complete:: Set after my other fics. A psycho killer is on the loose at Bayville, but this man does more than just kill and the Xmen must stop him before it's too late. Has some ScottJean in it. Please Review!
1. Enter the mind of a madman

Worse Than Death 1  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: I'm back! And I'm still in to X-men evolution. Here is the fic I mentioned in the last part of my previous X-men story "Matchmaker." I urge you to read it, but it doesn't have the action that this story has. This is a result of my obsession with X-men and my love of horror movies. I've always liked to get scared by something and this fic is a result of that habit. I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. The more reviews I get, the more motivation I have for completing the next part. Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.' This fic takes place after my last fic "Matchmaker." This story also has some strong language, but I think it's manageable. Just remember, it's only a story.  
  
**************************************  
  
Do you want to know who I am? Do you really? Have you got any clue who you're dealing with? No, of coarse you don't. You assholes probably don't even care! I am not human; I am more than just a mutant. They say that mutants are nothing but mistakes in the human gene pool. Well I'm here to tell you all that's a load of crap. They say mutants are the greatest threat to humanity, yeah right! I...Am the greatest threat to humanity. I control, I understand the very thing that keeps humanity in check. I control the glue that binds humanity to it's pitiful self! I control the two things that will make even the mightiest being tremble before me! I control fear! I control pain! I am Morris!  
  
You think I'm crazy?! You ain't seen nothing yet!  
  
****************************************  
  
In a little place called Bayville, the summer has set in. Jubilation and celebration among the young set forth. It doesn't matter whether they are mutants or not, they all partake in the peace and bliss that the summer sun brings to them. The X-men are no exception. They partake in the bliss of summer going swimming, going fishing, and hanging out with good friends.   
  
"Come on guys! Let's get us some lunch, I'm starving!" exclaimed Jack as he got out of the pool.  
  
"Now you're talking! Let's eat!" said Kurt as he followed Jack inside.  
  
Scott, Jean, Evan, and Kitty joined them as they made their way in to the kitchen for some food. Swimming had made them hungry. As they satisfied their appetites they went in to the living room to watch some TV.  
  
"Aw man!" said Kurt as he turned on the TV. "Every channel is still on the news about that psycho killer."  
  
All was not right in the bliss of summer. There was a dark side. Since the beginning of the month a madman was terrorizing the Northeast.  
  
"There's gotta be something else on," said Kurt.  
  
"Wait.........Let's just watch this, it could be important," suggested Kitty.  
  
"Like we have a choice," stated Scott as they sat down and continued to watch the news of this madman unfold.  
  
They listened to the TV reporter, "As of now there have been 17 victims of the mysterious assailant known only as Morris. Police are baffled at the randomness of his crimes. So far he had tortured 9 men and 8 women. Although none of them were actually killed by the attacker, every one of them is now in a mental institution suffering from severe psychosis. Two have committed suicide. So far the attacks are centered in Eastern New York and stretching as far east as Boston. New York police urge everybody in this area to stay indoors if possible, and stay around others for strength in numbers. The last attacks, which took place near Bayville, are getting more severe in nature every time this man commits another heinous act."  
  
As the X-men watched on, the stayed transfixed by the story. It seemed like a horror movie come to life. The attacker known only as Morris was like a demon from hell.  
  
"You think we should stick together like they say?" inquired Scott.  
  
"I wouldn't worry, this place is a fortress. Even if this guy is superhuman like they say, we can take him," reassured Evan.  
  
Just then the professor came down.   
  
"I don't think you should take it that lightly Evan," stated the Professor. "I've been keeping track of this mystery man all month and it's not a matter to be taken lightly. I have had psychic disturbances related to this man. He is truly mad. I want each one of you to stay with someone else and keep your guard up."  
  
"No prob professor!" said Kurt, "That guy is crusin' for a brusin' if he messes with the X-men."  
  
*********************************  
  
The students had to accept the professor's wishes. Now it was forbidden to go anywhere outside the institute alone. This meant no more solo journeys to the mall for the girls or guys.   
  
The day after the professor's decision Kitty and Rogue made a weekend trip to the mall for a little casual shopping. However, they weren't alone when they got there.   
  
"Hey Kitty wait up!" yelled a familiar voice.  
  
"Aw no, not Lance," moaned Rogue.   
  
"Oh.........Hey Lance," said Kitty dryly.  
  
"Hey, why so glum?" he asked.  
  
"Oh I don't know," said Kitty sarcastically, "Maybe because you ATTACKED us at that military base months ago and since then have refused to make eye contact with any of us, including me!"  
  
"Hey, I didn't have a choice," started Lance, but Kitty didn't let him finish.  
  
"There's always a choice Lance! You just made the wrong one. You've made too many wrong choices because you just don't get it," said Kitty sternly.   
  
Lance was taken aback. There was no denying that he had made the wrong decisions in fighting with Mystique and Magneto. "Just let me try and make it up," justified Lance.  
  
"I've been giving you too many chances. I thought you would eventually make the right one.........Because I really liked you. Now I guess I've learned things will never change with you, because you won't let them change. I thought we really had something special Lance.........But I guess I was wrong" Kitty's harsh words stuck. Then she walked away, Rogue followed suite.   
  
Lance didn't move from where he was. He was outraged, yet saddened at the same time. He felt he had finally blown it with Kitty, the girl he had been chasing since she got here. He could have done things differently so many times, but he didn't. With an angry face he left the mall, got in his jeep, and began the drive back to the brotherhood boarding house. However, he negated to realize that he was being watched.  
  
'Go ahead rocky. Ignore that trembling feeling you feel shivering up your spine. I know your secrets; I know every last secret of all my victims. I know where they're from and where they're going. I know who they are and in your case, what they are. Anybody with power is always easily defeated. This walking Richter scale will fall before his own weakness, which happens to be every human's weakness. Fear...And pain.'  
  
***********************************  
  
Lance drove down the open roads of upstate New York in a daze. It was sill a mixture of anger and sadness. He was too lost in his thoughts to realize he wasn't alone in his jeep. He briefly looked in his rear view mirror, for he thought he saw something. But it turned out to be nothing.........Or so he thought. His unannounced passenger then took out a mysterious, taser-like device and jammed in the back of his neck.   
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHH," yelled Lance helplessly as his Jeep swerved off the road. Soon it tipped over on its side and he fell out. However he was still screaming in pain. He lay helplessly on the ground in agony. He couldn't concentrate or use his powers to save himself. All that was there was pure pain. It was unlike any pain he had ever felt, it was far more severe than any memory in his mind.  
  
"Pathetic."  
  
Lance looked up at his mysterious attacker. All of the sudden, it was as if someone had taken every ounce of fear in the world and channeled it directly in to his head. The man wore all black, he wore a large trench coat, and his eyes were blood red. Lance tried to speak as the man got closer and looked deeper in to his eyes. The deeper he looked, the more fear he felt.  
  
"Wh..........Who..........Who are you?" was all Lance managed to get out. Soon he became paralyzed by the fear in his head and the pain in his body.  
  
"You think I'm gonna kill you Mr. Rock headed bastard?" smirked the attacker, "Don't you watch the news kid? I am Morris. And when I get through with you, you'll beg me to kill your sorry ass!"  
  
He then took out a knife and his taser weapon. He lunged towards the immobile Lance and began to ruthlessly cut in to his body. His blood flowed profusely while the madman simultaneously shocked him over and over again with his tasers. Lance could only scream.........Scream at the top of his lungs. He yelled out in pain and fear as Morris attacked him. The scariest thing was, Morris was smiling throughout the whole attack.  
  
***************************  
  
As Kitty and Rogue drove down the road back towards the mansion Kitty was still silent after the incident with Lance. Rogue noticed she was still angry with him.  
  
"Ya all right over there Kitty?" asked Rogue.  
  
Kitty didn't respond.  
  
"Look, I know ya liked Lance a lot. And I think he liked ya back, but I know ya made the right choice," reassured Rogue.  
  
Kitty's expression changed slightly.  
  
"You think so?" asked Kitty.  
  
"Of coarse. Ya deserve better than that guy. He really was never there for ya. Hell when he was there he was on the wrong side anyhow," said Rogue.  
  
Kitty chuckled a bit. It did help her feel better. The mood seemed to lighten up after that moment. They drove along the road until they were met with a ghastly sight.  
  
"Oh my God that's Lance's jeep!" exclaimed Kitty as she pulled over to investigate. Rogue jumped out with her and found Lance.   
  
"Lance! Lance, it's Kitty!" she shouted.  
  
She turned him over and faced him. Both girls promptly gasped as they saw him. His face.........Was blank. His eyes were open, but they were trembling. His body was covered in cuts, slashes, and bruises. He looked paralyzed. Indeed he was, he was paralyzed with fear, suffering with pain. The two girls saw that he was alive, but he looked worse than death itself.  
  
"We.........We better get him back to the institute," said Kitty finally.  
  
They promptly picked him up and put him in the back seat and they sped off towards the institute. They tried not to listen when he softly wailed out in gasps of pain and suffering.  
  
'Professor.........Professor can you hear me!' Kitty and Rogue frantically yelled in their thoughts, hoping that the professor would hear. Finally they got an answer.  
  
'Kitty, Rogue are you two okay!?' yelled the professor's thoughts in their minds.  
  
'Yeah, but Lance was attacked. We think it was that Morris guy. You've gotta help him he's getting hysterical.' Kitty's subconscious was getting frantic.  
  
'Okay, just bring him in. We'll help him as best we can.'  
  
Rogue then put the petal to the medal and began to speed towards the institute. Having only had her license for a short time it was a bumpy ride, but the made it back in one piece.  
  
*********************************  
  
The X-men and the Brotherhood stood as Lance underwent treatment. Both sides were shocked at the brutality of the attack. It had left Lance permanently scared externally and internally. He was getting more unstable by the moment. He would scream out in pain and tremble in fear. Jack watched the professor and Hank try in vain to get him to calm down. They couldn't sedate him, or calm him. Jack knew there was more to this than meets the eye.  
  
"Well, we can't seem to sedate him. We've given him the maximum dosages of the strongest sedatives we can find but they're not working," said Professor Xavier.  
  
"Well, what's wrong with him?!" yelled the Blob.  
  
"Yeah! Nobody messes with the hood man! No matter how psycho he is," exclaimed the Toad.  
  
"I'm sorry about your friend," stated the professor, "I truly am, but there's nothing we can do at this moment. Whoever attacked your friend really showed no mercy."  
  
"Well I guess mutant powers aren't enough to stop him like we thought," said Scott.  
  
"There might be more to it than that," stated Jack.  
  
"What do ya mean?" asked Rogue.  
  
Jack then silently walked up to Lance and put his hand over his head. He then closed his eyes and began to concentrate. The others watched as the symbol of the triforce began to glow brightly.  
  
"This is definitely not good," Jack sternly stated.  
  
"No kiddin' genius," replied Toad, "Tell us something we don't know."  
  
"If you really want to know, so be it. I don't think we're dealing with an ordinary psychopath my friends. We are definitely dealing with something far darker than we ever imagined," said Jack in an ominous tone.  
  
"Wait.........What do you mean darker?" asked Pietro.  
  
"This guy is packing magic.........Dark magic. And a lot of it I might add. That's why the professor can't help your friend. You see.........Magic must fight magic," stated Jack.  
  
"Well than use that magic shit you pull on us and help him!" shouted the Blob.  
  
"Fred calm down, you're not helping the situation," said Storm.  
  
"Lady I can't be calm! I'm too angry to........."  
  
"Look friend, I can help your friend along with the rest of the victims. I just need time in order to concoct a spell," said Jack.  
  
"Until then we must now, more than ever stay in groups. Lance was on his own so we can't make the same mistake. Everybody has to stick together now," said the professor.  
  
The Blob, frustrated and angry, yelled "You know what? I've got a better idea! Why don't we all go out, search, and pound this mother fucker in to a pulp!"  
  
"I'm with Blob man, we got to hunt him, not the other way around!" agreed Toad.  
  
"That would be a bad move guys," said Jack.  
  
"What do ya mean?!" yelled Toad.  
  
"Do you know Latin?" asked Jack. Confused, Toad and the rest of the brotherhood shook their heads. "Morris means 'you die' in Latin. Because he chose that name for a reason you must think of him as crazy, but not stupid. This guy shows that he has more than enough dark energy to take us down unless we play it smart, because if we don't he will. Take a good look at your friend. Muscle and power means shit in this situation. We have to fight him with our chi, not our powers."  
  
Jack was getting annoyed at the brotherhood's outbursts. That last little speech seemed to shut them up. He then walked up to the professor.  
  
"Professor, I strongly advise you call the rest of the recruits here and fill them in on the plan," said Jack.  
  
"Right, that's a good idea. I'll call them."  
  
*****************************************  
  
After a quick announcement the rest of the students met with the professor in the main hall. Then they made a role call to make sure everybody was there.  
  
"Is that everybody, professor?" asked Jack.  
  
"I........."  
  
Scott then suddenly said, "Wait.........Where's Tabitha?"  
  
Quickly everybody look around to see that she was the only one not there.  
  
Jack could only say after that, "Oh no."  
  
Unknown to them, they were being watched. Not through a window or an audio bug, but through evil. It was a magic of evil that can watch victims from the shadows.  
  
"Go ahead.........Stay in groups. If you live in constant fear I win, if you let your guard down and try to live on I win. You can't win against me. You pathetic excuses for mutants.........You are now threats to my fun. You all must be neutralized. And what I mean by neutralized, I mean victimized. You assholes are nothing but bugs. I will make it so each one of you begs for death. And as for your missing Tabitha, I'm afraid you're already too late."  
  
********************************  
  
AN: Well, that's if for part one of this new series. What do you all think? Like it? Hate it? Please tell me at slickboy444@aol.com. Stay tuned for the next part if you want to see what happens to Tabitha. Until then, best wishes to all of you. 


	2. Showing no mercy

Worse Than Death 2  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: Hey! Here is the next part to this fic. Remember what I said in the last part, the story does contain some language and violence. This is a result of my obsession with X-men and my love of horror movies. I've always liked to get scared by something and this fic is a result of that habit. I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. The more reviews I get, the more motivation I have for completing the next part. Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.'  
  
**********************************  
  
Tabitha Smith, aka: Boom Boom, was outside near the cliff casually listening to her CD player. Because of this she didn't hear the urgent announcement from the professor. She just sat there, oblivious to the terror that was going on. She was just listening to her music, when all of the sudden her player went silent.  
  
"Huh?" she said as she looked to check the batteries.   
  
However, there didn't seem to be anything wrong. It just seemed to cut itself off. Just then she got the strange feeling that she was being watched.  
  
"Tabitha........."  
  
She promptly turned around to see where the voice came from. She prepared an energy bomb in her hands.  
  
"Kurt? Evan? Come on guys stop fooling around," she said out loud, hoping it was just them. Her heart rate began to pound relentlessly as she became consumed by fear.  
  
"AHHHHHHHHH!" she screamed as she felt a heavy blast of red-hot pain shoot up her spine. Before she could react another blast caused her to scream out even louder than before. The pain.........The torment kept surging through her body without mercy. Then, a mysterious shadow came over her. She looked up and saw her attacker. The black trench coat and the blood red eyes that Lance saw now stood before her. As she looked in to his eyes, fear consumed her.  
  
"You stupid bitch!" yelled the attacker.  
  
He then sent another round of pain through her body with his taser weapon. He listened to her scream in anguish. The louder she screamed, the bigger the smile got across the attacker's face got.  
  
"I've seen your attitude Tabitha!" he said as he gave her another excruciating shock. "All you do is leech off of others." He sent another shock deep in to her body as he looked her deeper in the eyes. "You sadistic, controlling, bitch!" Now fear griped the young girl unlike anything she had ever felt. The fear and pain burned her soul as the mysterious Morris pulled out a knife.  
  
"Now it's time for you to learn what real pain and fear truly are!" he yelled as he lunged at her helpless body and began to ruthlessly cut in to her flesh.  
  
*************************************  
  
"Tabitha! Tabitha where are you!" yelled Jean as she searched her room.   
  
Just then Kurt teleported right next to her.  
  
"Did you find her?" asked a worried Kurt.  
  
"No. I can't find her anywhere," said Jean with a sigh.  
  
'Has anybody found her yet?' said the professor telepathically to each one of the students.  
  
Everyone said right back to him, 'no.'  
  
'We've looked everywhere outside and inside we can't find her!' said Kitty with her thoughts.  
  
Just then the doorbell rang.  
  
"I wonder who that could be?" said Hank who was searching with the professor.  
  
"Why don't you go see, Hank?" asked Professor Xavier as he was still trying to locate Tabitha telepathically.  
  
Beast then ran downstairs past the rest of the students who were still searching for Tabitha. He looked out the window to see who it was, but he couldn't see. He then promptly made his way to the door and opened it. He quickly stepped back in horror.  
  
"Everybody! Come quick! I found Tabitha!" yelled the Beast.  
  
The rest of the students made their way to the front door and were equally horrified at what they saw.  
  
"Oh.........My.........God," was all anyone could say.  
  
Tabitha's body was ravaged like a rag doll. Her cloths were ripped, her body was drenched with blood, and her eyes were wide open and petrified with fear. For a brief moment everyone who saw the terrible image stood in shock. Toad responded by throwing up at the ugly sight. Finally, Scott approached the mangled, yet still alive, body of the girl and noticed something. There was a note pinned to her bear neck with needles. Slowly, he removed the needles and opened the note.  
  
"Special delivery," Scott read aloud, "For all you bastards. Nobody is safe. Because I am a god. Morris."  
  
*****************************************  
  
After finding Tabitha's mangled body she was bought down to the medical quarters and treated. However, she was beyond help just like Lance. She constantly yelled out in pain and trembled in fear. She was completely incoherent just as the rest of the attacks.  
  
"Well," said the professor as he was coming out of the infirmary, "What do we do now?"  
  
Nobody knew, so they said nothing.  
  
"I don't think there's anything we can do," replied Beast.  
  
"I don't believe that," said Logan in a frustrated and infuriated tone.  
  
"This guy is terrorized innocent people and members of the family! I don't care who this guy is, we've gotta bring him down!" yelled Logan.  
  
"I feel your concern Wolverine, but..." started the professor.  
  
"Wait," said Jack, "I don't think we have a choice now."  
  
"But you said........." started Jean.  
  
"I know what I said, but now it's different. He's not just choosing random targets now," said Jack in a worried tone.  
  
"What do you mean?" replied Jean.  
  
"He's attacking us.........The mutants of this town. He's gonna try to take us down one by one!" Jack exclaimed.  
  
"How do you know that?" asked Kurt.  
  
"Because he's focusing on us now. First Lance, then Tabitha. Not to mention the note he left us and only us. He's after us all for some reason now," said Jack frantically.  
  
"Great, now what do we do?" said Rogue.  
  
Jack began to think briefly.  
  
"We stay in groups like before and beef up the security up here. Everyone bunks up with someone else for protection. The Brotherhood should also stay here," said Jack.  
  
"What!?" said the Blob.  
  
"No way man!" added Toad.  
  
"Hey!" yelled Jack, "If Morris attacked Lance he probably knows where you guys live now. If you go back there you'll be sitting ducks! Now you can go back there and end up like Lance and Tabitha, or you put your petty little grudge aside and stay with us. Normally nobody in here would care, but I think we need to stick together here!"  
  
Jack's frustration shut the rest of them up.  
  
***************************************  
  
The rest of the night was sleepless and anxious. The Brotherhood agreed to stay in the living room while the rest of the X-men bunked up in pairs. While the rest of the team was sleeping, Hank and Jack were hard at work trying to form a spell that would rid the victims of Morris's clutches. Needless to say, nobody got much sleep that night. The next morning everybody was tired and groggy from the events of the previous day.  
  
"You sleep at all Kurt?" asked Kitty as she got some breakfast.  
  
"No.........Not really," he responded groggily. "It's just so hard.........When you feel like you have to look over your shoulder every five minutes."  
  
"I hope they can catch this guy soon. It sucks always living in fear," said Kitty.  
  
"I know," said Kurt, "I think that's what this guy wants."  
  
As they ate the others joined them. All they could talk about was Morris. They later turned on the TV to see if they could get any information that might help them. It was a simple task since every station was covering the story.  
  
"Last night the mysterious attacker Morris struck twice," said the TV new anchor. "The attacks took place in Bayville New York. One was against a young man named Lance Alvers in the late afternoon, the other against a young woman named Tabitha Smith at the boarding house where she stayed. New York police along with the National Guard have closed off Bayville and surrounded the city along with many of the outskirts. The streets are now basically a ghost town as people are too afraid to leave their homes. Local events have been cancelled due to the attacks and may stay cancelled until Morris is caught. Police are confident that since they have sealed of the city area, they will apprehend the attacker and put an end to his bloody rampage."  
  
While they listened to the broadcast, they stayed transfixed with a mixture of emotions. They felt outrage, fear, anger, dread, anxiety.........Then all of the sudden somebody cut the TV off.  
  
"Hey! We were watching that!" said Kitty in an irritated tone.  
  
Scott just stood there with the remote in his hands.  
  
"Look.........You guys can stay here, trembling in fear about who will be the next victim or you can fight back," said Scott.  
  
"Well.........What else can we do?" said Pietro.  
  
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm not going to let this psycho control me and my life," said Scott with seriousness in his voice.   
  
He then threw the controller back to the crowd who was gathered around the TV. Then he began to walk off.  
  
"Where you heading?" asked Jean.  
  
"To the Danger Room to blow off some steam. I'm not gonna let that psycho asshole win that easily, anybody who want's to join me can join me." responded Scott.  
  
As he left the rest were left to contemplate Scott's words. After a brief moment, Jean was the first one to get up.  
  
"You know he's got a point. I'm not letting Morris control me either," she said as she walked off following Scott.  
  
"Me too, man," said Kurt, "This news is too depressing. Morris may be after us, but I'm not going to give up and make it any easier for him."  
  
After Kurt left the rest of the group began to understand.  
  
"Anybody up for some football?" said Evan all of the sudden.  
  
"Sure, anything's better than this," said Toad.  
  
"Count me in too," said Amara.  
  
"I'm game," said Roberto.  
  
Soon the only people left were Kitty and Rogue. The rest had gone out.   
  
"I can't believe them. They're gonna get themselves killed out there," said Rogue.  
  
"Yeah, but I guess they don't care," said Kitty as she turned the TV back on.  
  
As Scott, Jean, Kurt, and later Wolverine put their fears aside and had a little workout in the Danger Room, the rest were out on the front lawn playing a game of football. From a distance, however, they were still being watched.  
  
"These dumb asses never cease to amaze me. They were so afraid, the fucking pansies! Oh well, I still win. If you stay afraid I win, if you pretend nothing is wrong and I bring you down, I win. No matter how you try to outsmart me, I still win. You will all suffer, mock my word you will all fucking suffer!"  
  
*****************************************  
  
AN: Well, that's it for part 2. Want to see what the psycho, Morris, means by those words. Stay tuned, and don't forget to send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. The more reviews I get the faster the part will come up. Thank you very much for reading my story thus far and best wishes to you all. 


	3. Nobody is safe

Worse Than Death 3  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: Hey! Here is the next part to this fic. This is a result of my obsession with X-men and my love of horror movies. I've always liked to get scared by something and this fic is a result of that habit. I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. The more reviews I get, the more motivation I have for completing the next part. Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.'  
  
**********************************  
  
A madman was on the loose and nobody was safe. However, that didn't stop the X-men and the Brotherhood from enjoying life. Most of the group was out in the front yard playing a game of football to forget their troubles and the rest were exercising in the danger room. In the Danger Room Scott, Jean, Kurt, and Logan were practicing on the obstacle course.  
  
"Man look at him go," said Kurt as he and Jean watched Scott go through the course with record speed.  
  
"I know, when did this happen?" said Jean.  
  
Scott, who had been training more rigorously with Jack than the rest of the students, was blasting through the obstacles at record speed. For some unknown reason he was able to learn from Jack faster and better than anybody else.  
  
"That's good, but now he's got to face Logan and that slows everybody down," said Jean.  
  
Scott approached Logan knowing that he was doing better than he ever had before.  
  
'Man.........Jack's training really does the trick,' thought Scott.  
  
Scott then approached Logan.  
  
"Not bad kid," said Logan, "You impress the masses, but now you've got one last obstacle.........Me."  
  
With a grin, Logan drew his claws and lunged forth at Scott in full force. Scott countered his attack with a drop kick. From that point the duo fought on. Scott fought with every ounce of knowledge that Jack had crammed in to his head in the last month.  
  
"Man, nobody ever lasts this long with Logan!" exclaimed Kurt.  
  
"You think he'll break the record?" asked Jean.  
  
"Anything's possible I guess," replied Kurt.  
  
As Scott continued to fight Logan, Logan began to get fiercer. With every passing moment he got stronger and angrier. Finally, Scott decided to end it. In one swift blow he threw an intense punch, but the finishing touch was the extra blast from his visor. Logan instantly flew back and fell down in utter defeat. Scott just stood there amazed.  
  
"Whoa.........Did I just beat Logan for the first time?" he asked himself aloud in disbelief.  
  
"Yeah he did it!" yelled Kurt in amazement.  
  
Logan then got up and looked at Scott in a fit of rage. Scott thought he was about to attack when he did the exact opposite.  
  
"I'm impressed Slim.........You finally beat me," said Logan.  
  
"Uh.........Thanks," said Scott still slightly confused.  
  
All of the sudden somebody stepped in to the room. It was Jack.  
  
"I see you actually listened to what I taught you Scott," said Jack with a smile.  
  
Scott and the rest of those present looked over at Jack who had been locked away in his room trying to formulate a spell to cure the victims of Morris.  
  
"Ah, you're finally out Jack," said Logan.  
  
"I thought I'd take a break, I've been at it for 9 hours non-stop," said Jack.  
  
"Dude, you've got some stamina!" exclaimed Kurt.  
  
"Indeed," replied Jack.  
  
"So, any luck on finding a spell?" asked Jean.  
  
"I'm convinced there is a spell out there and I'm close. I'm very close, but I came down here to tell you guys something about this guy," started Jack. The rest of the team listened intently. "This guy, Morris, uses dark magic in his attacks. He uses it as a means of torture in conjunctions with his mutations."  
  
"Wait.........This bub is a mutant?" asked Logan.  
  
"I'm afraid so. He is a special kind of psychic that has power over the minds of others," said Jack, "It's the reason he can control the fear in his victims. It's also how he inflicts heavy pain."  
  
"Great, how do we fight him?" said Scott in a frustrated manner.  
  
"Well," thought Jack, "His control on pain can be avoided, but as for his hook on fear I can't think of a simple remedy for that. All I know is if you guys are attacked by this guy, DO NOT look him in the eyes."  
  
"His eyes?" asked Jean.  
  
"Yeah, that's how he gets in to your mind. He may put you in a world of pain, but you can prevent the fear aspect," said Jack sternly.  
  
"Don't worry Jack. We'll tell the rest of the team," said Scott.  
  
"Thanks man, I better get back to finding a counter spell," replied Jack.   
  
Jack began to leave back towards his room, but before he was out of sight Logan said one last thing.   
  
"Jack," started Logan. Jack turned back in his direction, "You've taught Cyke well. You gotta teach the rest of us that shit man."  
  
Jack grinned back, "You got it."  
  
************************************  
  
While the rest were off doing other things, the Professor and Storm stayed with the two victims in the infirmary. Things with them were getting progressively worse. They were suffering from more psychosis and they had become dangerously hysterical. Lance had already tried to cut his wrists, but they stopped him. Tabitha was also getting worse because they couldn't sedate her to help heal her internal wounds. No drug, sedative, or painkiller would work on them. If they didn't get a counter spell soon they would most likely die of the internal bleeding.  
  
"I sure hope Jack comes up with a spell soon, I don't know how much longer we can keep them from not killing themselves," worried Storm.  
  
"Have faith Ororo. Jack will come through. Until then we'll just have to hope that nobody else gets hurt," said the Professor.  
  
Meanwhile Kitty and Rogue had fallen asleep upstairs in front of the TV. Their lack of sleep was all too evident.  
  
"Kitty........."  
  
Kitty promptly woke up at the sound of her name. She looked around to see where the source was. She looked over at Rogue, but she was sound asleep.  
  
"Kitty........."  
  
She got up and followed the voice, she could hear that it was coming from upstairs.  
  
"Kitty.........Help."  
  
After the call for help she dashed upstairs, forgetting what Jack had told them earlier about staying together. She slowly walked through the corridors of the upstairs. She didn't think twice about the fact that she was alone, for it was broad daylight.  
  
"Kitty......"  
  
She was right outside the door where the sound was coming from.   
  
"Kurt......Bobby.......Come on guys this isn't funny!" she said getting a little scared.  
  
She went to open the door, but it was locked. Undaunted, she phased through the door. She found herself in an empty, unlit room. It must have been a one of the vacant guestrooms. The voice she was hearing seemed to stop. She began to feel scared as she realized that she was alone. She quickly began to dash out of the room, but it was too late. Before she could get to the door a dark hand jammed a mysterious device in to the back of her neck.  
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Kitty cried in pain.  
  
She fell to the floor, like the rest of the victims. She opened her eyes through the pain and saw her attacker. It was the Morris.  
  
"Aw.........What's the matter princess?" said Morris as he sent another blast of pain through her body. He relished the scream that followed. "Nobody can hear you bitch! It's Kitty Pryde isn't it? You're the vegetarian of these losers aren't you?" Kitty was to afraid and under too much pain to respond. "Well you must think fur and meat are murder, huh? BITCH I'LL SHOW YOU MURDER!"  
  
He then grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off the ground with one hand. Then with a knife in the other he began to ruthlessly cut in to her small body. Like all the others, the more she screamed, the happier the attacker became.  
  
*************************************  
  
"Rogue! Hey Rogue!" said Jack as he frantically shook her to wake her up, but to no avail.  
  
"Allow me," said Jean. She then put her hands on her head and closed her eyes. She then sent her mind a psychic wake up call.  
  
It worked like a charm. "Hey! Jean I wish ya would stop doin' that!" said Rogue as she rubbed her head.  
  
"Sorry, but where's Kitty?" asked Jean.  
  
"Kitty......Uh," began Rogue as she looked around the room for her. "I don't know. We were just watchin' TV and I guess we fell asleep."  
  
"So you don't know where she went?" asked Jack.  
  
"No, I've been here sleepin' the whole time," explained Rogue.  
  
"Great, I told you all to stay together!" said a frustrated Jack. "We've got to find her!"  
  
"What........Why?" asked Rogue.  
  
"I don't know......I just got a very bad feeling about this," he said back. "Scott, Jean, you two look upstairs and see if she went up there. Rogue, come with me and we'll check outside."  
  
They didn't ask questions at a time like this. Scott and Jean ran upstairs and began their search while Jack and Rogue ran outside. The rest of the X-men as well as the Brotherhood were still playing football.  
  
"Hey guys! Guys!" yelled Jack.  
  
"Vhat is it Jack?" said Kurt, confused on what was happening.  
  
"Have you guys seen Kitty out here?" asked Jack.  
  
"No.......Ve thought she was inside vatching TV vith Rogue," said Kurt.  
  
"Great......We've got to find her," exclaimed Jack.  
  
"I'm on it!" said Pietro right before he sped off to search the grounds. However, he was less concerned with finding Kitty and more with finding Morris.  
  
"I meant in groups!" yelled Jack.  
  
Meanwhile Scott and Jean were frantically searching the upstairs for any sign of Kitty, but to no avail.  
  
"I got a bad feeling about this," said Jean.  
  
"That makes two of us," responded Scott.  
  
Then they got to a door that was locked.  
  
"Hey! This door is locked!" said Scott in frustration.  
  
"Allow me," said Jean as she unlocked it telepathically.  
  
As they stepped in the room they saw the bloody and bruised body of Kitty Pryde.  
  
"No! He got her!" yelled Jean.   
  
As they quickly went to her side they both frantically used their thoughts to tell the professor 'Morris got Kitty!'  
  
The professor heard them loud and clear.  
  
"Storm, Logan, Morris got Kitty!" said the professor.  
  
"He attacked half-pint! That's it......I'm gonna find this guy and rip his heart out!" yelled Wolverine out in anger. However, the professor stopped him.  
  
"No Logan! We can't risk it, we still don't know entirely what we're dealing with," said the professor.  
  
Logan just let out a frustrated, angry grunt.  
  
*************************************  
  
Meanwhile outside Pietro was still trying to scout the area for Morris. As he ran at blinding speeds he was confident he was too fast for the psycho. However, this was not so. As he ran a fist came out of nowhere and leveled the speed demon.   
  
"What the?!" was all he could get out as he tumbled on to the ground in confusion.  
  
Before he could get up he felt a blast of pain through a shock from the mysterious taser weapon of Morris.  
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" was all Pietro could yell out.  
  
While he was tumbled over in pain his attack walked up to him, continually giving him painful shocks to keep him from running away.  
  
"What's up Quicksilver, why so glum?" asked the attacker as he gave him another shock. "Your speed mean shit now! You think you have power!? I'll show you REAL power!"  
  
*****************************  
  
As Scott and Jean were getting ready to bring Kitty down to the medical quarters, they heard something ringing.  
  
"Scott, what was that?" said Jean.  
  
They looked around to find the source of the noise. Scott then heard it ringing again and traced it to Kitty's pocket.  
  
"Hey, I think it's coming from her pocket!" said Scott.   
  
Then Jean quickly reached in and pulled out a cell phone.  
  
"Hey, this isn't Kitty's cell phone," said Jean in confusion.  
  
"Let me see," said Scott as Jean gave it to him.  
  
It was still ringing. Slowly he answered the phone.  
  
**********************************  
  
AN: Well, that's it for now. Want to know who is on the other line of that phone? Stay tuned for the next part. Send many reviews if you want to see it as soon as possible. Send them to slickboy444@aol.com. REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! Thank you all for reading my story thus far and I appreciate your attention. Until next time, best wishes! 


	4. Confrontation

Worse Than Death 4  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: Hey! Here is part 4 of this fic. This is a result of my obsession with X-men and my love of horror movies. I've always liked to get scared by something and this fic is a result of that habit. I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. Also, tell me if this story is scary in any way! The more reviews I get, the more motivation I have for completing the next part. Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.'  
  
**********************************  
  
Scott and Jean looked over Kitty's mangled, yet still alive, body. She looked like the rest of the victims, but this time she had a little extra. Scott and Jean had found a cell phone in her pocket when it started to ring. Immediately they knew it wasn't Kitty's cell phone, but it was still something worth looking in to. Slowly, Scott took it and answered it.  
  
"Congratulations Cyclops, you win the lottery of being the first one to hear my voice without being tortured!" said a voice with a disturbing sense of humor and insanity.  
  
"You!" yelled in anger Scott in to the phone, "It's you isn't it! Morris!"  
  
Jean got up close to try and hear what was happening.  
  
"Very good Summers, very good," responded Morris in an immensely sarcastic tone. "I see that you and that red-headed girlfriend found little Kitty Pryde. Man she was such a waste of time. She didn't even put up a fight!" Then he let out a sinister laugh in to the phone.  
  
Scott was infuriated. He had insulted and attacked his family. "WHEN I FIND YOU I SWEAR!!!!"  
  
But he was cut off. "Pop quiz asshole, a very certain psycho is going down route 17 towards the cliff near the lake and a mother and her daughter are coming his way. You're 25 miles from the point of contact. You have the power to stop it. What do you do? WHAT DO YOU DO?!"  
  
Scott heard this and his anger gave way to shock and worry. Jean heard enough as well.  
  
"You......" started Scott.  
  
"Sorry but that's all you get loser. You have 20 minutes and it takes 45 to get here. Your only concern now is the two innocent people that are about to face a very painful experience."  
  
Scott stopped, he knew he had to stop it. "But......Why me?" he said.  
  
"Like I said earlier......You won the lottery, HA!" responded Morris as he hung up the phone.  
  
As soon as Scott heard that click he turned right to Jean. "We've gotta get there and stop that son of a bitch!"  
  
Scott and Jean rushed downstairs as fast as they could, for time was essential. This may be the only time they could stop this madman. Both Scott and Jean were determined to bring this guy down after what he did to their friends. Soon they got to the garage and Scott started up his car. They couldn't take the X-copter or the X-jet because it was under repairs and it takes too long to launch. Using his optic blasts he made an opening in the garage, for he needed the extra time. He then sped off as Jean opened the gates with telekinesis at unheard of speeds.  
  
************************************  
  
'Professor! Can you hear me Professor?' yelled Jean through her mind as she rode with Scott towards where Morris told them.  
  
The professor, who was still tending to the victims in the medical bays, heard the frantic screams.  
  
'Jean?! What's wrong, you sound eccentric,' thought the professor.  
  
'It's Kitty, she's been attacked by Morris, she's up in the spare guestroom. We left her there because we talked to him,' said Jean through her mind.  
  
"Storm, Logan get Kitty, she's in the spare guestroom," said the Professor frantically to his comrades. They soon rushed out to get her. Then he went back to talking to Jean.  
  
'Wait......You've been talking to Morris?' said the professor telepathically.  
  
'Yes, that's why we had to leave her. He's threatened a young girl and her mother somewhere off of south route 17 near the cliff. Scott and I are heading there to stop him,' replied Jean.  
  
'Be careful! I'll see if I can get some backup out there,' assured the professor.  
  
'Make it quick! We've got less than 20 minutes,' yelled Jean through her mind.  
  
After that the psychic transmissions stopped. He had other voices raiding his mind.  
  
'Professor! It's me Jack!' blasted Jack's voice, 'Morris got Pietro! We're bringing him in!'  
  
The professor didn't respond, he was in too much shock. Two souls on his grounds were attacked and the attacker got away. The institute was not safe anymore. This whole affair was turning in to a massacre. He now had to place his hopes in Scott and Jean stopping the madman before he could get to anybody else.  
  
*********************************  
  
Meanwhile on the road Scott was driving like a madman. In speeds that exceeded 100 mph easily he frantically pursued the madman that had been torturing his only family. Even though he didn't know exactly where he was heading, he was driving frantically to get to Morris before he got to the girl and her mother. Through all the commotion, Jack came running down to the professor with some news not long after Pietro and Kitty were brought in.  
  
"Professor!" yelled Jack as he came running down, "Professor are you in here?"  
  
"Jack, this is a bad time," said the professor trying to calm down the new victims of Morris.  
  
"I know, but I've got some important news, good and bad that is," exclaimed Jack.  
  
"What is it?" asked the professor eagerly.  
  
"I found a way to cure the victims," said Jack.  
  
"What!? You can cure them?" repeated the professor.  
  
"Yeah, but there's a catch," replied Jack.  
  
The professor, whose hopes almost seemed dashed, said "What kind of catch?"  
  
"I have the spell itself......But I can't cast it," said Jack sorrowfully.  
  
"What? How come?"  
  
Jack took a deep breath. "Apparently, Morris has used some unusual form of dark magic to block any spells I cast. He's made it so I can't use my powers to heal them; remember, crazy not stupid."  
  
The professor sighed, "Well, can somebody else cast the spell?"  
  
"Unfortunately no, this like any magic spell has to be cast by someone with far more life energy than a normal being or even a mutant for that matter," explained Jack.  
  
"Well, can we find any of these individuals who have that much life energy to spare?" asked Professor Xavier.  
  
"I don't know, it will take some time. By the way, where are Scott and Jean?" asked Jack.  
  
"Morris left a cell phone with Kitty and used it to contact them."  
  
"What!? You mean they're able to talk to him? Where are they?" exclaimed Jack.  
  
"They went after him. They said something about him giving them info on his next attack. They said it was somewhere along south route 17," said the Professor.  
  
As soon as he finished that sentence Jack used his powers to morph in to Link.  
  
"I'm going to help them," said Link sternly as he sped off.  
  
The professor didn't argue with him as he sped off with the power of the Pegasus Shoes. While he was running Jack/Link kept thinking 'Why would he all of the sudden reveal himself to someone? All his other attacks are at random, but why do I get the feeling that wasn't his motive for choosing Scott and Jean to contact?' He kept wondering why as he ran along the road, careful not to overlook any detail.  
  
*******************************************  
  
While Link was racing towards his friends, Scott had reached south route 17 and frantically began to look around for the brutal attacker.  
  
"Jean, can you pick his signal up?" asked Scott.  
  
"I'm trying, I'm not getting anything," responded Jean in frustration.  
  
"Well keep at it! We can't let that guy hurt anybody else!"   
  
As they drove along they didn't notice a speeding motorcycle coming up behind them. It began closing fast. Jean was still trying to locate the madman's mind. Scott looked in the rear view mirror and saw the mysterious rider. He was wearing all black, including a large trench coat that waved in the air.  
  
'Something's not right here,' thought Scott as he watched the mysterious rider close in on his car.   
  
He kept watching the man behind him, then all of the sudden he saw him draw a weapon. It looked like a handheld automatic pistol. In a second the gun was pointed at his head.  
  
"Jean get down!" yelled Scott as he forced her down.  
  
Shots rang out as a barrage of bullets began to fly above their heads. Immediately, Scott's car swerved on to the side of the road until it came to an abrupt stop. Frantically, they ran out of the car and took cover behind it to avoid any other shots.  
  
"Jean, are you okay?" asked Scott as he breathed heavily.  
  
"Yeah, but I don't know why I couldn't locate him if he was so close. I'm sorry Scott," replied Jean, who was visibly shaken and disappointed with her self.  
  
"Hey, we don't know who we're dealing with here. Jack says this guy is packing magic so don't blame your self," reassured Scott who was still short of breath.  
  
As they took shelter behind the car they looked up to see who the attacker was. Scott had gotten out his power visor from the glove compartment and put it on for battle. They watched as he approached on his motorcycle. Once it came to a stop the mysterious man took off his helmet to reveal his face.  
  
"Jean! Don't look him in the eye!" yelled Scott as he remembered Jack's warning.  
  
The man approached him. He was wearing all black, but the most disturbing aspect was his sinister looking smile. He approached his new witnesses.  
  
"Well, well.........You made it. I knew you wouldn't let me down," said the madman with an evil grin and psycho tone.  
  
"Morris I presume," said Scott.  
  
"You got it Einstein. You are the first assholes who have seen my face and not already been hunched over in pain like a dried up piece of shit. You must feel very proud," said Morris.  
  
Scott and Jean's faces didn't waver, because they were still red hot with anger over what he had done to their friends.  
  
"Well guess what?! It will do you no good! Cause when I get through with you two......It's gonna make the rest of my victims look like fucking child's play!" yelled the madman.  
  
That did it, with a war cry the two teens dashed for Morris, but in an instant he pulled out a mysterious staff that had a dragon's head on the top. In a swift beam of dark green energy he knocked them back nearly 10 feet.  
  
"Uhh," was all either of them could say.  
  
"Jack wasn't kidding when he said this guy was a dark magic magician," groaned Jean who felt that she was unable to get up.  
  
As they got up a small car began to roll down the road. Morris saw the car and smiled intently.  
  
"Ah, my victims are here."  
  
Using his dragon staff he blasted the tires of the car and watched it swerve off the road. He listened to the occupants scream in fear. Quickly, a tall woman and a little girl rushed out of the car. However, they too were knocked off their feet by Morris's blasts. The young mother instinctively tried to protect her daughter. Morris approached them with a sinister grin.  
  
"Welcome to the world of pain. I am Morris, your tour guide," said Morris.  
  
"OH NO YOU DON'T!" yelled a menacing voice.  
  
Morris looked over to see an angry, fiery redhead. She lunged at him and tackled the madman.  
  
"RUN! HURRY, RUN!" yelled Jean to the frightened mother and her daughter.  
  
Quickly, the young woman and her daughter got up and began to run back in the direction from where they came from. Morris, infuriated but unshaken, used his strength to force Jean off him. Then he tackled her.  
  
"Come on child! Look me in the eye! Look at the face of raw fear!"  
  
"GET OFF HER NOW!" yelled another menacing voice.  
  
Then a blast of red light blew Morris off of Jean. Scott ran towards Jean who was still down on the ground.  
  
"JEAN! Jean are you okay?!" asked Scott frantically yelled.  
  
Jean slowly opened her eyes.  
  
"Yeah......I'm okay. I didn't look him in the eye," she said.  
  
"Good girl," replied Scott with a sigh of relief.  
  
"ERRRR! YOU BASTARDS! YOU'RE BOTH FUCKING DEAD!" yelled Morris.  
  
"Dream on psycho!" said a mysterious voice.  
  
Morris looked to his left to see another assailant. Scott and Jean looked to see that it was Jack in the form his alter ego Link. Swiftly, he jumped and gave him a furious kick at his still blistering speed.  
  
"It's time to show you that dark magic will never triumph over the power of light," said Link.  
  
Morris got up with relative ease. Even in the presence of the hero of time he wasn't worried in the slightest.  
  
"Oh shut up already asshole! The power of light, good triumphs over evil?" said Morris in a highly sarcastic tone. "I had a feeling I'd meet you hero of time. Cause isn't it a given that wherever there's dark forces the hero of time is not far behind to come and save the day? Give me a fucking break!"  
  
Link drew his sword.  
  
"You think you're so high and mighty don't ya Link. Well all the other dark forces know Link is never easily beaten......But this time I'm not going to fight Link. I'm going to fight Jack Robinson instead."  
  
Link looked at him quizzically. Suddenly, the dragon staff began to glow. Link began to sweat in anxiety as Morris got closer. Morris began to smile ever more as he got closer and the light on his staff got brighter.  
  
"Link is a true hero......But you have a weakness bub! Unfortunately, that weakness is yourself!" yelled Morris.  
  
Then a flash of light from Morris's staff caused Link to keel over mysteriously. He closed his eyes and yelled.  
  
"AHHHHHH, NO! AHHHHHHH!"  
  
************************************  
  
AN: Well, that's if for now. That's the end of part 4 of "Worse Than Death." Sorry to leave you at a cliffhanger, but it's the only way to get you all to review! Please REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! Send them to slickboy444@aol.com. Thank you for reading my story and best wishes to you all. 


	5. A fight to the death

Worse Than Death 5  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: Hey! Here is part 5. This is a result of my obsession with X-men and my love of horror movies. The story is heating up and I hope you all have enjoyed it thus far. I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. Also, tell me if this story is scary in any way! Please review and tell me what you think! REVIEW! Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.'  
  
**********************************  
  
"You see you little prick! You're nothing!" yelled Morris as he continued to shine a mysterious light on Link, who was screaming out in torment.  
  
"NO! MAKE IT STOP!" cried the downed hero. Images......Countless images of suffering and pain flew through his mind. All were pictures from his past. It didn't take much effort for a madman to bring them to surface. He bought images that attacked Jack Robinson from within. For once the hero's own weakness was who he really is.  
  
"What's he doing to him?" said Scott worried about what was happening.  
  
Scott and Jean watched on as Link was thrashing around the air wildly. He looked like he was crying and in pain at the same time, yet Morris had yet to touch him.  
  
"MAKE IT STOP!" cried out Link, "I can't take it!"  
  
"Oh shut up you fucking pussy!" said Morris in a humored, yet annoyed tone. "I can't believe that someone so powerful is trembling in the wake of something to stupid! So your parents are dead, your foster parents beat the shit out of you, and you were a bum. JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP AND DEAL WITH IT ALREADY YOU LITTLE PANSIE!"  
  
Morris smiled as he watched Link keel over as a result of his other side, Jack. But Scott had enough of watching this. Still shaken from the blast, he got up and gave Morris a taste of his eye beams.  
  
"Hey Morris! See how you like my magic!" yelled Scott as he adjusted his visor to full power and blasted him off his feet nearly 20 feet away.  
  
Scott ran over to beat him back while Jean ran up to the fallen Link's side.  
  
"Link! Jack can you hear me!" she yelled as she tried to calm him down. However, he couldn't stop screaming and crying out in pain.  
  
"I CAN'T!" yelled Link. "I can't make it stop......"  
  
As Jean was trying to get Link back on his feet, Scott was running up to meet his assailant.  
  
"Ah, it's good to see you back up again ya one-eyed jackass!" said Morris in amusement in wake of Scott's rage. He casually got back on his feet. "So you think a pathetic freak like you can beat me? Please! You wanna dig your own grave well be my fuckin' guest!"  
  
In a rage Scott burst forth in a fighting frenzy, but Morris countered with even tougher moves.  
  
"Face it one-eye! You can't beat me, nobody can!" boasted Morris.  
  
"I don't care!" yelled Scott, "I won't let you hurt anybody else!" replied Scott as he tried to deliver a hard kick to the madman. However, it didn't seem to phase him in the slightest. Morris fought back with great ferocity. Despite a valiant effort, Scott was unable to knock down the madman mainly due to the anger clouding his mind.  
  
"Oh listen to yourself! You won't let me hurt anybody else!" Morris's tone was clearly sarcastic, it seemed no matter what he couldn't be upset by words. "Sorry to break the news to ya kid, but you're no big hero. I know you may be their leader but deep down inside you are the same scared, little blind kid. Face it bastard! You're nothing!"  
  
Those words stung, but Scott was too angry to care. 'Come on Summers!' he said to himself, 'Have you forgotten everything the professor and Jack taught you? Are you gonna let this asshole do this? Pull yourself together! And you can start by doing what Jack once said and calm yourself down.'  
  
He took a deep breath as Morris stood near him still with a wide smile on his face. Scott let the expressions of rage on his face fade and he began to charge the psycho. With a grin Morris simply lifted his dragon staff and began to blast mystic bolts at him, but it wasn't that easy. Scott countered by blasting them in mid flight with his own optic blasts while he was still closing in. When he got close he swiftly kicked the staff out of Morris's hand and caught it in mid air. He then swiftly broke it with his knee. However, Morris was still undaunted. He just stood by and gave him a mock clap.  
  
"Very good kid, very good. But now I gotta get another staff," he said in a sarcastic tone. "You must feel proud of yourself now that you broke my magic staff. Well here's a news flash for ya! It won't do you any good!"  
  
Then he removed his trench coat. Scott saw that underneath he looked as strong as Juggernaut, but not as big. He wore all black attire and in the center of his shirt was a red symbol of darkness. He watched as Morris cracked his knuckles and prepared himself to fight. He still remained unworried as he prepared to fight.  
  
**************************************  
  
Back with Jack, Jean was still trying to calm him down. He was still going ballistic.  
  
'Gotta calm him down. I have to settle his mind,' she thought to herself. She closed her eyes and put her hand on his head. She sent a wave of psychic energy in to his mind, but it was still in turmoil. She couldn't speak to man inside. Just then she heard his voice.  
  
'......Jean.'  
  
'Link!' she yelled subconsciously, 'Come on pull yourself out of it! We need you!'  
  
'No,' responded the voice.  
  
Jean tried harder to break Morris's spell, but then the magic got stronger and she felt it pushing her out.  
  
'Scott......The key......He......Must......Use......'   
  
Then the voice went silent and Jean was forced out of Link's mind. He was still in pain, she tried again to no avail. She wondered what that voice meant when it spoke.  
  
"Scott, the key?" said Jean, "What does it mean, what does he have to use?"  
  
Questions kept running through her head. She got up to run and find Scott, but Link let out another yell of agony.  
  
"I CAN'T.....MAKE IT.....STOP!" was all he got out before fell to his knees again and let out another round of screams.  
  
Jean couldn't leave him or he would go berserk. She used her psychic energy to calm him, but something was still tormenting him internally.  
  
"I can't leave him, but......Scott," she said with great concern.  
  
***********************************  
  
Scott fell to the ground hard again as Morris beat him down yet again. He was battered and bruised, but he still fought on. However, Morris's fighting skills were par with Link's. As he fought, he listened through his own physical pain at Morris's laugh.  
  
"You disappoint me Cyclops. I thought you would be a lot tougher!" yelled Morris as he tried to plant another swift kick, but this time he dodged it and gave him a swift kick of his own. Morris fell back, but he was still undaunted.  
  
"Nice, but you know you can't keep this up forever. It will only be a matter of time before you fall. You know why?" asked Morris with an evil smile. "Because I'm stronger than you, I'm faster than you, I'M BETTER THAN YOU!"  
  
Scott looked at his attacker. He was more than just a psycho, he was a demon. He looked around him to see if he could use anything to his advantage, but everywhere he looked, Morris was still there. He stared back at him, with his sinister grin. Then he looked in the distance at the cliff off the road. Morris saw it too.  
  
"Oh, you think I'm gonna be that stupid and fall of a freakin' cliff? You gotta be shitin' me!" he said amused.  
  
Scott said nothing and swiftly jumped at him and began to knock him back towards the cliff. He fought relentlessly to push him back. Slowly, he kept fighting, but he took many heavy blows. Where normal beings would fatigue, he kept fighting on. Although he didn't show it, Morris began to get frustrated. As they got closer Scott became more eager to knock him off and finish his reign of terror.  
  
"You think you've got me right where you want me don't ya!" said Morris with a grin.  
  
Then like lightning he grabbed the tired, battered Scott and spun him around with a kick and a jump so now he was facing the cliff.  
  
"Face it Summers you failed! You're nothing! You know why? Because I'm stronger and more powerful you can ever dream. You see, I control what makes everybody tremble. I control fear and pain. Do you know what it's like to have someone at your mercy like that?! It's better than sex! When I control somebody like that......I am God!"  
  
Scott just looked at the madman and his evil grin. Nothing had phased him in their whole fight. He just made it look like a game. "You're crazy! You fucking crazy Morris!" yelled Scott.  
  
"Oh you say that like it's a bad thing! Not that you'll be around long enough to appreciate it," shouted Morris. "When I'm done killing you......I'm gonna get that stupid girlfriend of yours." Scott became enraged as Morris began to walk closer to him, trying to force him off the cliff. "And man we are gonna have some fun together. That bitch Jean is gonna know the full power of Morris! And you can't do shit about it!"  
  
As Morris looked at Scott with a grin he saw Scott's anger burn on, but he wasn't concerned. Then......Something happened. Scott's expression changed; it changed from a look of anger......To a smile. Morris stopped walking towards him.  
  
"Sorry Morris, then I guess we'll both have to go," said Scott with a grin.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Just then Scott let loose all the power in his visor to the ground around him and Morris. He didn't hold back at all, he threw everything he had at the fragile ledge. Soon, it began to shake and crumble. Neither Scott or Morris knew that there was such power in Scott's optic blasts. For the first time Morris's looked changed to one of concern. He tried to get off the crumbling earth, but then in an instant, it collapsed.  
  
"AHHHHHHHH!" yelled the madman as he and Scott fell with the crumbling rocks.  
  
As they fell down the rockslide, Scott grabbed on to a jagged outcrop from the side of the cliff. However, Morris grabbed Scott's leg.  
  
"If I go down I'm taking you with me!" yelled Morris.  
  
The extra weight was pulling Scott down. He struggled to keep going, but Morris began to climb up his legs to meet him. His expression was one of total madness.  
  
"What do you do Scott? What do you fucking do? You think you've won, but you will die with me!" yelled Morris. "Come on! Look me in the eye kid......See the fear. See the anguish you know you have, but can't admit. Come on......Bastard!"  
  
Morris's eyes grew wider with anger; he wanted one last victim.  
  
"You want me to look you in the eye Morris!?" yelled Scott. With a grin he turned around. "YOU'VE GOT IT!"   
  
With his eyes still wide Scott looked at him, and with a grin he turned his visor on full blast. The beams went straight in to his and with a scream he fell. His head had literally caught fire from the blast.  
  
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" was his last word.  
  
Scott watched him as he fell and saw as he landed headfirst on the jagged rocks below.  
  
"Whoa, pick that guy up with a sponge."  
  
*********************************  
  
Just then Link, still in pain snapped out of it.  
  
"AH! Oh......It's gone," he said short of breath.  
  
Jean approached him carefully.  
  
"It's okay Jean, I'm okay......Wait, where's Scott!" said Link frantically.  
  
"He attacked Morris, I think they're at the cliff," responded Jean.  
  
"WHAT! He's nuts! We've got to help him!" he yelled as he got up.  
  
"What?" yelled Jean as she followed him to the cliff.  
  
"I found out why he chose Scott to confront," exclaimed Link.  
  
"What do you mean, I thought Morris's chooses at random?" responded Jean.  
  
"No! He knew Scott was the key!"  
  
"The key?" said Jean. That's what she heard in Link's thoughts when she tried to snap him out of Morris's spell.  
  
"Yes, Morris made sure I couldn't cast a healing spell, so he used dark magic to keep me from using my magic. The only one who can cast the spell is someone with lots of chi," explained Link.  
  
"Wait......Scott! He's the one, he can cast the spell, right!" said Jean as she pieced the puzzle together.  
  
"Right! If he's unable to cast the spell, all of the victims will die including our own!"  
  
They finally reached the cliff. There was a huge chunk of land dislodged from the main platform.   
  
"SCOTT!" yelled Jean in worry.  
  
"Hey Scott! Say something man!" said Link.  
  
They continued to call out, frantically looking for him. The kept calling, but to no avail. Jean was getting worried; then she heard a voice in her head.  
  
'Jean! It's me!'  
  
"Link! I found him!" said Jean with a relieved tone.  
  
"Is he okay?" asked Link.  
  
"He's okay!" she exclaimed.  
  
"YES!" exclaimed Link.  
  
Jean ran and looked over the edge. Finally, she saw a small figure clinging to the side of the cliff.  
  
'Jean, I'm slipping!' yelled Scott subconsciously.  
  
'Hold on!'   
  
"I see him!" said Link, "Can you lift him up here!"  
  
"Let's find out," said Jean as she put her hands on her head and concentrated.  
  
Scott's grip was about to slip when he felt an invisible force lift him up. A wave of relief came over him.  
  
"That's it Jean! You've got it!" yelled Scott as he continually moved up the high cliff. Jean concentrated more as he got closer and closer. Finally, he reached the top. Immediately, as soon as he landed they raced for each other and met in a great, passionate embrace.  
  
"Scott......Thank God your okay!" said Jean softly on the verge of tears. Then through her mind she softly said 'I love you so much. I don't ever want to loose you.'  
  
"Thanks to you, I'm okay Jean," responded Scott. Then with his own thoughts he responded 'It's all right, I'm alive my love.'  
  
"Damn!" exclaimed Link as he looked over the cliff. "Dude, is that Morris down there?"  
  
Scott and Jean looked back over the cliff at the sloppy mess that was once the madman Morris.  
  
"Well, what's left of him," said Scott.  
  
"Indeed," said Jean. "Somebody get a mop."  
  
****************************************  
  
AN: Well, that's it for this part. Only one more part left in my series "Worse Than Death." I hope you all enjoyed this story. The last chapter will just tie up the loose ends for you all. Don't worry, it shouldn't take long to complete. Until then, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! Until next time, best wishes. 


	6. Undoing the evil

Worse Than Death 6  
  
By slickboy444  
  
AN: Hey! Here is the last part of "Worse Than Death." Now that the story is about over, I must reassure you that there are still fanfics from me that I have yet to write so keep looking out for my work! I urge you to tell me what you think of this story, along with all my other stories. Also, tell me if this story is scary in any way! Please review and tell me what you think! REVIEW! Send reviews to slickboy444@aol.com. Remember, I don't own X-men or Zelda or any of the songs I may mention in the future so please don't sue! I have nothing. Thanks, and enjoy!  
  
All my x-men evolution fics are dedicated to Jen (aka: littlesortaredheadedgirl) the author of the x-men evolution fic "Snow." I highly recommend you all read it.   
  
AN: 'these mean character thoughts.'  
  
**********************************  
  
Morris, the insane psycho attacker that had been tormenting the innocent, was finally dead. However, his victims were still suffering. Link, the hero of time, couldn't stop their suffering due to the insane magic of the deceased madman. However, that doesn't mean that someone else with equal chi can't use the spell to cure the victims. Down in the medical bay Link had transformed back in to Jack Robinson. He was making the final preparations for the healing spell that would rid the victims of Morris's torment.  
  
"Are you ready Scott?" asked Jack.  
  
"As I'll ever be, I'm just nervous since I've never done magic before," said Scott.  
  
"Don't worry you'll do fine," reassured Jean.  
  
"Jack are you sure this will work?" asked the professor.  
  
"It's the only way, I wish I could do it but Morris made that impossible."  
  
"At least it explains why he was after me in the first place," said Scott. "He knew I was the only one who could cast a healing spell."  
  
"It's also the reason why you've learned faster than the others," said Jack.  
  
The rest looked at Jack quizzically.  
  
"You see, Scott has very high amounts of life energy for somebody, or anybody for that matter, like him. I don't know why, but he does. It's the reason he learns mystic arts of magic and fighting faster than the rest of you. In fact, given some lessons he could become a powerful wizard of the mystic arts," explained Jack.  
  
Then Jack came up to Scott with a mysterious paintbrush in his hand with black paint on it.  
  
"Hold out your hands Scott," said Jack. He did as he was told, even though he didn't know quite what he was getting himself in to. Jack then wrote two mysterious symbols on the back of each hand. They both looked like Chinese, but they were a bit more enigmatic. As Scott looked at the mysterious symbols, they all of the sudden began to glow brightly.  
  
"Whoa," was all Scott could say.  
  
"All right guys, stand back, it's time to undo Morris's evil," said Jack.  
  
Everybody was shooed out of the room except for Scott, Jack, and the victims. Lance, Pietro, Tabitha, and Kitty had begun to look like living corpses. They needed to be saved now or they were going to die.  
  
The others watched from a nearby window. The air was filled with anxiety.  
  
"I hope this works," said Storm.  
  
"In a few moments we'll know," said Logan as they all crossed their fingers.  
  
In the room Jack sprinkled a bit of mysterious magic dust on each victim, which had gone deathly quiet. Their eyes were still wide open and bloodshot from the lack of sleep and the paralyzing fear from their attacks. Kitty and Tabitha were getting sicker from the internal bleeding that was unable to be treated. It was now do or die time.  
  
"Okay Scott, are you ready?" asked Jack.  
  
Scott took a deep breath, "Yes, I'm ready."  
  
"Okay man, good luck. Now, focus your life energy like I showed you and recite the words."  
  
Scott nodded; Jack then took a step back. Scott closed his eyes and began to concentrate. He used the meditative techniques he had learned from Jack and began to focus. Then he began to recite the mysterious spell Jack had told him.  
  
"Como hai mon se hie, yu mon sie tzu. Como hai mon se hie, yu mon sie tzu."  
  
He repeated this phrase again and again. As he continued, the air became crisp and a mysterious blue light began to emulate from Scott's hands where the symbols were drawn. The light got brighter and Scott began to say his words louder.  
  
"Come on......Come on Scott," said Jean.  
  
The lights got brighter and the rest of the crew began to shield their eyes. Then, after he said his mysterious words one more time, a last burst of light burst from Scott's hands and into the four victims. It became too bright in order to see. Then, in an instant the light faded, and all was calm again.  
  
"......Huh?" It was Kitty's voice. It was the first time she had spoken in over a day.  
  
The rest of the victims stirred from their petrified state and looked around in confusion.  
  
"What......Happened?" was all they could say.  
  
The others rushed in the room to see their friends.   
  
"Kitty! You're all right!" exclaimed Kurt as he teleported to her bedside.   
  
Jack saw that the spell seemed to work. Each victim had awoken and appeared to have little or no memory of their attack. He then took a closer look.  
  
"Kitty......Your cuts and bruises are gone. How?" said Jack with a puzzled look.  
  
"What do you mean? I don't remember getting an cuts," said Kitty.  
  
"But......Don't you remember the attack?" asked Jack hoping that the spell worked flawlessly, but he did have concerns.  
  
"What attack?" she asked.  
  
"Vhat is the problem Jack? Your spell vorked," said Kurt.  
  
"It's just that, I had a spell for beating Morris, but I never put anything in it about healing the physical wounds he caused," said Jack perplexed. "Unless......"  
  
He then looked over at Scott, who was seeing if the rest of the victims were okay. He then began to wonder. As he thought Jack's expression turned in to one of sorrow. Quietly, he left the room. The professor saw him leave and he saw his expression. Worried, he followed Jack to see what was the problem. Unknown to either of them, Rogue followed them as well, for concern on Jack's well being. She felt he was troubled by something.  
  
Meanwhile the Brotherhood was jubilant over the recovery of their friends.  
  
"Oh man, you don't remember anything?" exclaimed Todd as he was talking to Lance.  
  
"No......Not really!" replied Lance.  
  
"Hey, I don't remember shit. Just what happened to us?" asked Pietro.  
  
"Long story man and you really don't wanna know. Let's just get out of this place before we all become to comfortable here," said the Blob.  
  
"I'm with that Fred! Come on guys!" said Todd.  
  
Lance and Pietro slowly got up and they began to leave, but just before they left Lance turned back to Scott.  
  
"Hey Summers," said Lance.  
  
"Yeah," said Scott weary of what he might say.  
  
"......Thanks man."  
  
A small smile spread across Scott's face.  
  
"Don't mention it," he replied.  
  
Lance smiled back half-heartedly and left.  
  
************************************  
  
The professor had been following Jack around, wondering what was bothering him. He knew it was something, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Finally, Jack stopped in the main hall and turned around to see the professor.  
  
"Why are you following me?" asked Jack who kind of already knew.  
  
"Don't ask questions for which you already know the answers Jack," responded Professor Xavier.  
  
Jack sighed in defeat. He knew he couldn't hide from a psychic.  
  
"Look, professor it's just that......I know I found the spell, but I also almost failed."  
  
"Why do you say that?" asked the professor.  
  
"When I went to help Scott and Jean, I had the power to end it before it had begun. And without breaking a sweat, Morris laid me out and had me on my knees. He......Just attacked me in a way that, well, made me rethink whether or not I'm worthy of being the incarnation of my master."  
  
Jack's tone was clearly serious and depressed. He had never shown any personal or physical weakness since he came to the institute except when it came to his past. Now he was ashamed that a madman had made him realize he had one.  
  
"Jack," began the professor, "Never doubt your worthiness at anything. Even under these circumstances, you must remember that you were hand picked out of the countless others. There had to have been a reason for it. Maybe you just don't know that reason yet."  
  
"But that doesn't change what happened. I could have gotten Scott and Jean killed because of my actions. They won not because of me; they almost lost because of me. I guess neither Morris or I could have contemplated how great of life energy they had." Jack's expression didn't change.  
  
The professor could tell that his guilt couldn't be fought by others, only himself.  
  
"Look Jack, you're still young. You have barely begun to scratch the surface on what you are truly capable of," the professor's words were beginning to sooth Jack's mood. "Even your master at some point in his youth was once unsure, inexperienced, and doubtful of his worth. You may be a divine reincarnation, buy you must remember you're still human. You make mistakes, everybody does. Ask anyone on this team. The best I can say is stop dwelling so much and start learning. I sense that Morris used your past to fight you. Well maybe that's a sign that you should attack it as well instead of ignoring and suppressing it."  
  
The professor's words of wisdom penetrated deeply in to the shaken hero of time. Finally he began to feel better, and maybe this was supposed to happen to him at some time or another.  
  
"Thanks Professor."  
  
"Anytime Jack," responded the professor as he left the room to tend to the rest of the students.   
  
Jack was left there to ponder his words. Out of nowhere, Rogue approached him. He had a feeling that she would follow him, yet it was a weird feeling to have someone actually care this deeply for him. Rogue walked up to him, she could tell he was trying to say something.  
  
"Rogue I......" Jack began.  
  
"Wait, I heard what ya said. Ya don't need to say it again," Rogue then took a deep breath, "I just wanted to ya to know that I don't care what ya think of yerself. I still think ya were meant to be the hero of time and that'll never change......And about what the professor said about confrontin' yer past, just remember......That ya never have to be alone."  
  
With that she finished and gave him a reassuring hug. Jack openly embraced her as he struggled to fight back his tears. As Rogue gave him comfort, she kept saying "Yer never alone" over and over again.  
  
****************************************  
  
AN: The end! That's it for this story. I hope you all liked it as much as I enjoyed writing it. There are many other stories I have in mind for the continuation of my series of X-men evolution stories, but that will have to wait for another time. I remind you to PLEASE REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! Send them to slickboy444@aol.com. Thanks again for reading and until next time best wishes from me to you. 


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